About Me

I am a girl who fell in love, got married and wanted to have a regular ol' ordinary family. What I ended up getting was everything but.
This blog chronicles our journey as a family who was blessed with a very special child.
From the day we found out that she had only a 5% chance of living to the present, life has been a true roller coaster of emotions. And most surprisingly, more rewarding than I ever thought possible.
Click here to contact me.

The Harlie Fund

Due to the requests of many caring people, our family set up a legal trust fund, "THE HARLIE FUND" to help with Harlie's care. You may click here for more information or click on the donate button above.

The Harlie Crew

We invite each fan of Harlie to join the following initial crew members and commit to make a monthly contribution to The Harlie Fund.

With Christy's willingness to share, we have worried about, prayed for and rejoiced in the accomplishments of a remarkable girl. The members of The Harlie Crew together show their support by contributing monthly. If you would like to join us, please call Bill Jeffries at (804) 288-1672.

Thursday, May 2, 2013

The We Heart Harlie event is right around the corner. The big day is May 18th. Lynda Reider has been working so hard! Just look at this flyer!

Wow, right? Thank you to Courtney Lynch (and her company and employees) for this beautiful flyer! I think she did a great job! And thank you to Paige Stevens Photography for the beautiful pictures of Harlie! I will post the rest soon. They are just beautiful!!

This year the raffle and 5k have been combined into one day. And Lynda has been working her magic getting lots of fun stuff organized. She even got a firetruck lined up to be there. There are going to be lots of good raffle prizes - I'll post a list soon.

We got new t-shirts designed and ordered, and they should be in any day now. I'm so excited! You can order them when you register for the 5k, or you can buy them the day of the event.

Harlie's school is so incredibly supportive of her. It really is amazing. The PTA passed out papers for the students to cut out hearts and decorate them. Then they post them on the wall in the school - Hearts for Harlie.

They are going to do this through the month of May. Isn't that the sweetest thing? I want to share a Facebook comment from a friend of mine, Beckie:

What a thoughtful project. So good for Harlie, but such a learning experience for the other children. Kudos to teachers who see beyond the "book learning" and take advantage of such a powerful example that can't be taught any other way!"

I am truly thankful for how amazing Harlie's school (both administrative staff and students) has been to her and to our family. I never dreamed it would be like this. And Harlie knows that wall is in support of her.

Today, she studied it. And she picked one of the hearts off the wall. It was a drawing of a little girl standing next to another little girl. And the smaller girl is clearly a drawing of Harlie. It has her bow and her trach. It was drawn by a fellow Daisy. I don't think Harlie realizes that. But, she knows the picture is of her and another little girl. And Terri told me that she held on to it all day. And as soon as she walked into the house this afternoon, she showed it to me. The whole thing is overwhelming. I really had NO idea how loved she would be by other kids. I feared the world was a lot more cruel. I have never been more glad to be wrong.

Lynda runs the We Heart Harlie Facebook page. And she's been working on the route for the 5k. Since we will be running on a main road, she's had to get the help of some Henrico County police officers to help with traffic control. I really don't know how she finds the time to do all that she does. (And she leads a Daisy troop, too!)

She also wrote this story and submitted it to Richmond Family Magazine. Isn't she something? Truly! I don't know how in the world I'm ever going to be able to thank her enough. I think her husband is really looking forward to May 19th - when she doesn't have to spend so much time and energy on the Holton family! Lynda and Rich - thank you!!

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Murphy

Murphy is 13 and is in eighth grade. He is constantly making us laugh with his crazy sense of humor and wonderful imagination. He is a great big brother and adjusted with no problems to this role. He has been an easy kid to raise from the get-go (despite the fact he entered this world 5 weeks ahead of schedule).

Harlie Caroline

Harlie is 10 and is in fourth grade. She has Goldenhar Syndrome, VACTERL Association and a lung defect that required the removal of 2 lobes on the right side. After over 50 surgeries (4 of them open heart), she is remarkably age appropriate. She is the sweetest, funniest little girl I've ever met. You can't help but fall in love with her.

Cooper

Cooper is 8 and is in third grade. He is a very talkative, high energy and affectionate little guy. He is all boy and he is a very funny kid. We are so lucky to have him!

Rooney

Rooney was born on February 5, 2012. He has been a wonderful addition to our family. He is such a great little dog and I just can't imagine life without him now! I love him so much!!!